The High Court has refused an application by M. I. to stop the Health Service Executive investigating child-protection concerns arising from an allegation that he sexually abused a 13-year-old girl. The court also refused his requests to bar the HSE from sharing any determination it might make.
The applicant sought judicial review of the HSE’s decision to investigate and an injunction preventing it from proceeding until the criminal case against him had concluded. The judgment does not state the outcome of those criminal proceedings.
Mr Justice Hedigan held that the HSE had a duty to assess the possible risk to children. The inquiry was a child-protection investigation, he said, and not a parallel criminal investigation or an exercise in deciding guilt or innocence. The HSE’s role was distinct from that of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
The judge relied on principles from the earlier case M.Q. v. Gleeson, known as the “Barr principles”. They require the HSE to use fair procedures when investigating allegations and, if it concludes there is a risk, to communicate that to an appropriate party. The judgment said the HSE could investigate while criminal proceedings were ongoing.
The applicant had been told of the proposed investigation and invited to attend a meeting or comment in writing. He obtained an adjournment of the meeting. The HSE later wrote to his solicitors outlining its concerns and the procedures it intended to follow. The applicant then began the judicial review proceedings. The judge considered the application premature, saying the solicitors should have engaged further with the HSE to clarify the procedures that concerned them.
On sharing information, the judge said any disclosure to third parties should be minimal, targeted to specific child-protection concerns and limited to what was necessary to protect children who might be at risk. He said that approach could respect the applicant’s good name and right to a fair trial.
The court refused the relief sought. The judgment did not decide whether the allegation was true or whether the applicant posed a risk; it addressed whether the HSE could conduct its inquiry and the safeguards and limits that should apply.